===Guess What? Islam and the US Supreme Court Agree on the Mujhammad Cartoons===
By now, almost everyone knows about the crude cartoon caricatures of Prophet Muhammad -- and about the outrage, economic boycotts, and tragic loss of life that have followed their publication in Denmark and other countries, including the United States. What is perhaps less well known is that the publications of these cartoons, far from being an example of Constitutionally protected free speech, actually violates fundamental principles of American law. In 1942, the U.S. Supreme Court held that certain forms of speech could be, and ought to be, restricted by the legal system – if they fell into the category of "fighting talk" calculated solely to provoke outrage. Allow me to quote briefly from the landmark decision, Chaplinsky v. New Hampshire: "There are certain well-defined and narrowly limited classes of speech, the prevention and punishment of which have never been thought to raise any constitutional problem. These include the lewd and obscene, the profane, the libelous, and the insulting or "fighting words" those which by their very utterance inflict injury or tend to incite an immediate breach of the peace. It has been well observed that such utterances are no essential part of any exposition of ideas, and are of such slight social value as a step to truth that any benefit that may be derived from them is clearly outweighed by the social interest in order and morality." It takes only a glance at the week's headlines to confirm that these cartoons constitute the kind of expression that "inflict(s) injury" and "tend(s) to incite an immediate breach of the peace. The Supreme Court's decision echoes centuries of Islamic tradition. There is ample historical evidence that Islam, through the world's final Prophet, Muhammad, taught and strengthened consultative democratic traditions, respect for differing points of view, and basic personal freedoms. Freedom of religion and speech are definitely among the core Islamic values. Yet, like the Supreme Court, Islam holds that freedom of speech is not absolute. With freedoms come limits. Muslims mention the Almighty only with reverence. Likewise, all that relates to the Most Merciful -- angels, prophets and messengers, books of revelation, houses of worship, and so forth, are to be objects of dearness and respect. Studying and understanding this well-established tradition will go a long way toward helping non-Muslims come to terms with the anguish and rage of the world's Muslims in recent days. Yes. We take our religion seriously, and we will not sit unmoved as the objects of our greatest love and admiration are desecrated on the global stage. We live in an era of knowledge and enlightenment, and therefore we pray for the wisdom to use our freedoms for virtuous ends, like furthering communication and cooperation between humanity and bringing an end to war and privation. We must enlighten ourselves with authentic knowledge to lift the yokes of ignorance and prejudice from us. At the same time, we must be sure that we respond appropriately and nonviolently to provocations, and decline the invitation to live in the 21st century, yet espouse values of revenge and hatred that the Prophet rejected. Historically, the Muslim world has offered a living example of interfaith cooperation, harmony and justice. Andalusia, for over 700 years the cradle of civilization in Europe, was where Muslims, Christians and Jews lived peacefully, side by side. It was where tolerance, consultation, and mutual respect carried the day. It was where wise people from all of these faiths engaged in scholarly interfaith discussions, research and learning. It was a legacy to the noblest aspirations of the human spirit. We see too little of the spirit of Andalusia, and perhaps too much of the spirit of Rush Limbaugh, in our present situation. These hateful, deeply prejudicial images – the latest in a stream of high-profile abuses of Muslims and their faith system – have been republished by supposedly reputable mainstream outlets such as the Philadelphia Inquirer and ABC News. I join not only today's mainstream Islamic scholars, but also the precedents of the United States Supreme Court, when I implore non-Muslims not to mistake the right to freedom of speech (which, like all rights, comes with certain responsibilities) for the right to engage in hate speech, an activity with no virtue or benefit whatsoever. And to Muslims, I urge a similar caution in the terms we use to respond to the present situation, following our faith's dictate that the believers use only the best words in all of their communications, and steadfastly avoid the worst. Yours truly, Shpendim Nadzaku Imam Muslim Association of Greater Rockford ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> Join modern day disciples reach the disfigured and poor with hope and healing http://us.click.yahoo.com/lMct6A/Vp3LAA/i1hLAA/TXWolB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> *************************************************************************** {Invite (mankind, O Muhammad ) to the Way of your Lord (i.e. Islam) with wisdom (i.e. with the Divine Inspiration and the Qur'an) and fair preaching, and argue with them in a way that is better. Truly, your Lord knows best who has gone astray from His Path, and He is the Best Aware of those who are guided.} (Holy Quran-16:125) {And who is better in speech than he who [says: "My Lord is Allah (believes in His Oneness)," and then stands straight (acts upon His Order), and] invites (men) to Allah's (Islamic Monotheism), and does righteous deeds, and says: "I am one of the Muslims."} (Holy Quran-41:33) The prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "By Allah, if Allah guides one person by you, it is better for you than the best types of camels." [al-Bukhaaree, Muslim] The prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) also said, "Whoever calls to guidance will have a reward similar to the reward of the one who follows him, without the reward of either of them being lessened at all." [Muslim, Ahmad, Aboo Daawood, an-Nasaa'ee, at-Tirmidhee, Ibn Maajah] -------------------------------------------------------------------------- All views expressed herein belong to the individuals concerned and do not in any way reflect the official views of IslamCity unless sanctioned or approved otherwise. If your mailbox clogged with mails from IslamCity, you may wish to get a daily digest of emails by logging-on to http://www.yahoogroups.com to change your mail delivery settings or email the moderators at [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the title "change to daily digest". Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/islamcity/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
